Ace!

Atlanta Gallifreyans meeting this Saturday, Jun 21st, at 4:30 PM

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 20:27:45 GMT

I just wanted to remind everyone in the metro (and beyond) Atlanta area that the next meeting of the Atlanta Gallifreyans (Atlanta's own Doctor Who club) is tomorrow, Saturday June the 21st, starting at 4:30 PM at the Doraville Civic Center. (The civic center is within walking distance of the Doraville Marta station, and is a block or so away from the Buford Hiway and I-285 intersection. Directions at the AG site, below.)

Please bring one of the following: food or drink or plate and napkins and plastic cutlery with which to share with all, if you can. :)

We will be watching the last part of The Greatest Show in the Galaxy (time constraints kept us from watching all the way to to the end last month, alas). We're in the middle of watching a Seventh Doctor episode per meeting. Next up is Battlefield. We should be finished with McCoy by October at the latest, which means that we will be returning to the Third Doctor with The Three Doctors, just in time for the show's anniversary month in November! :)

The Tenth Doctor episodes that we should be watching include Silence in the Library, Forest of the Dead, and Midnight. If we are lucky, we will also be watching Turn Left! We are skipping The Wasp and the Unicorn for now, since it was just shown on the Sci-Fi Channel, so most everyone has had a chance to see it hopefully.

The site for the club is here:
http://www.atlantagallifreyans.org/
Directions are on the site.
Any further questions about the meeting, please ask here. :)

Fic: Spirits

Wed, 07 May 2008 22:58:42 GMT

Title: Spirits

Author: wiccagirl24

Disclaimer: The BBC owns everything Charles Dickens doesn't. Me? I just own the voices in my head (or maybe they own me?)

Spoilers: References to Curse of Fenric, Ghost Light and Survival. Also the Big Finish Audio The Rapture

Rating: Teen (a bit of swearing, one use of the F word) Also, implied character death (not a main character)

Summery: Christmas is not the only time the Spirits of past, present and future make themselves known. Ace is shown something she needs to see by an unusual cast of Spirits.

A/N: This comes from a prompt was to rewrite Dicken's A Christmas Carol. It was suggested to use something other than 'Christmas.' I did. Thanks to talcat for the Brit checking.

“I have to... I’m sorry, I have to go.” Ace bolted from the chippy, ignoring the startled looks of the other customers and Dave’s attempts to call her back. She ran hard, dodging the people, dust bins and lights that littered the pavement. The TARDIS was in the park, only a dozen yards away, and she headed straight for it. She didn’t notice the car until the irate driver slammed on his breaks and blared his horn. Ace didn’t slow down to apologize. She didn’t stop until she reached the familiar blue door and quickly unlocked it.

“That didn’t take very long. I hope you remembered the...” The Doctor looked up from the panel of the console he had taken apart. His teasing smile slid into a frown. “Ace?”

“I changed my mind about the sandwiches and chips. I’m not hungry.” Ace took deep gulps of air, trying to steady her breathing. She couldn’t look the Doctor in the eye, and instead focused on the wires poking out of the console. The flux capacitor was on the fritz again. “I’ll be in my room unless you need an extra hand fixin’ that.”

She made it half way across the console room before she was stopped by a hand encircling her wrist. “You have many talents, Ace, but hiding your emotions is not one of them. Will you tell me what’s troubling you?”

“London is a naff town, too close to Perivale for my taste.” Once he would have continued asking questions until he got the answers and she would have kept silent as a matter of principle, but they had both learned. That didn’t mean she didn’t have to work up to the telling, though. “I ran into an old mate of mine at the chip shop.”

“Someone from Perivale,” he deduced. The hand on her wrist moved to her shoulder as he pulled her closer. Ace briefly closed her eyes and rested one hand on his chest, feeling the double beat of his hearts pulsing against her palm. Tactile proof of his living, and she took comfort from the knowledge.

“I haven’t seen him since I was sixteen; don’t know if I would have even recognized him if he hadn’t of had his name stitched on his shirt. Dave knew me right off.”

“You’re not an easy person to forget,” he said with a smile.

“We exchanged the usual what’s what and all that. He still keeps up with a few of the old gang. Shreela’s got herself a job here in town, working at the hospital. Dave said...” The words echoed in her ears, but she couldn’t seem to get them to pass her lips. An understanding squeeze of her shoulder and a deep breath, and she forced them out in a rush. “...said ‘e was sorry to hear about my mum.”

“Audrey?”

“She’s in the oncology ward, Dave said. Shreela....” It was too much. Ace pulled away and wrapped her arms around herself. “I can’t do this, can’t let her pull me down again. Every time I see her I turn into this girl who is angry and hateful and lost. I’m not that person anymore.”

“You don’t have to decide anything right now.” The Doctor brushed his hand against one of her cheeks. “A spot of tea and a bit of a kip, and things may be clearer in the morning.”

“Come morning I hope we’re ready for an adventure on the other side of the galaxy.” Something with lots of running and blowing things up, and little time for thinking, she hoped.

“If tomorrow morning comes and that’s what you want, then I’m sure we can come up with just the right spot. And if you desire a visit with your mother...”

“I won’t,” Ace interjected.

“If you change your mind, just know that you don’t have to go alone.” He took her hand and led her down the corridor to the kitchen. Perhaps instead of tea he would take an old friend’s advice for times of trouble and make hot cocoa.

........

“Wake up Ace. Come on, it’s time to get up now.”

“Professor?” Ace fought her way through her dreams and back into reality. She felt like she had just fallen asleep; not even the cocoa she had drunk earlier had helped with the restlessness. Her bed was a testament to her tossing and turning, with the twisted blankets and the pillows on the floor, not to mention the girl sitting near her feet.

The girl?

“Who the bloody hell are you, and what are you doing in my room?”

“If my mum could hear you now, she’d be threatening you with a mouthful of soap.”

In the half light it was impossible to make out much more than a basic form and a long black braid, but Ace recognized the voice immediately. It was impossible. “Manisha?”

“In the flesh, which is a bit strange after all this time.” The laugh was even more familiar than the voice had been. “I haven’t had an actual body since... well I guess you know that.”

“You’re dead.” Ace fumbled for the lamp next to her bed, half expecting the form at the end of her bed to disappear when the light turned on. She was still there, looking exactly as she had all those years ago in Perivale. She even had the same ratty friendship bracelet tied around one wrist, and wore a familiar purple jumper.

“Keen as ever, mate. And before you ask, no you’re not dead. It’s been close a time or ten, though. You should be more careful.”

Ace ignored the chastisement. “What are you doing here?”

“Do you remember the year we were twelve, and we went to that panto in London with the rest of the school?”

“We tried to skive off, but Miss Watkins caught us in the hallway and watched us like a hawk for the whole performance,” Ace remembered. “Christmas Carol, waddinit?”

“Got it in one. Anyway, it turns out Dickens knew what he was talking about.” At Ace’s puzzled look, Manisha elaborated. “Just call me Marley.”

“You’re joking.” The Professor was right fond of Dickens - hoped to meet him one day - and just last Christmas he had read the whole of Scrooge’s story aloud while she had decorated the tree. She had liked the story then, especially as he had done all the voices, but had no wish to act it out in her own life.

“Nope. Don’t ask me who, but someone apparently thinks you need a bit of an eye opening.” Manisha prowled the room, picking up bits and pieces that were lying out. She smiled when she picked up an old snapshot of the two of them, right next to a photo of Ace and the Doctor.

“I’m not a scrooge.” It wasn’t fair, really. Didn’t she spend the better part of her days helping people and stopping bad guys? If she was going to get a chance to see her best friend once more - even if it was a weird dream - couldn’t it be for conversation over a cuppa?

“Never said you were. Greed was his thing. You’ve got a different lesson to learn.”

“I don’t want to learn a lesson, I want to go back to sleep.”

“You know the drill, Ace. I’d say that the first ghost appears at the strike of one, but you’ve only got a digital clock and ringing the cloister bell would be slight overkill.” The carved elephant Manisha had been holding slipped through not quite solid fingers as she started to fade away.

“Oi! Don’t do that. You have to tell me what I’m supposed to learn, don’t you? Can’t you just...”

“Sorry, Doro. They only gave me a little bit of time, and I’ve used it all up.” She smiled sadly. “Take care, my friend.”

“”Nisha!” Ace jumped out of the bed, but it was too late. The room was empty and she was once again alone. She turned off the light and flopped back down on the bed, burying her head under the pillows.

.....

“Front and center, Ace. We have places to be so no dilly dallying.”

With the pillow still over her head the voice was muffled, but Ace refused to remove it. “You’re a figment of my imagination. I’m not listening to you.”

“If that’s the way you insist on going at this.”

Suddenly she was falling, her bed gone from under her. Before she could brace for the impact she was on the floor. A white linoleum floor that was most definitely not her bedroom carpet. “Oi! What did you do that for?”

“Expediency. Now come along.”

Ace looked up and found that the man holding out his hand was Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. Great. “You’re not a ghost. T’ be a ghost you have to be dead, and the Professor would be upset if you were dead.”

“I am not dead, nor am I a ghost. I’m simply being borrowed for a little while, if I understand things correctly. Tomorrow when I wake up I’ll simply think this is a weird dream. Doris will be amused. Now come along.” The Brig helped her up before heading down a corridor at a fast walk. Ace had to run to catch up.

“Where are we?” A hospital, that much was obvious as they passed open doorways. The rooms were full of sterile whiteness, standard institutional beds and medical equipment. At least she wouldn’t look too odd in her nightshirt and bare feet.

“You’ll see when we get there.” One more twist in the halls and they arrived, walking into a room that Ace was surprised to find occupied. There was a red headed woman sitting on a hard wooden chair and a chavey blond in the bed. The blond was holding a baby. Neither woman noticed the two new additions to the room.

“Brig?” Ace asked curiously.

“We’re only here to watch, not to interfere. Though we can see them, they can not see or hear us,” he answered. “Feel free to move about as much as you like.”

Ace waved one arm widely in the air. When the gesture wasn’t noticed she moved closer the bed, her attention drawn by the baby. It was tinier than any she had seen before, and looked almost like a doll.

“What are you going to name her?”

Intently looking at the pale blue eyes that had just fluttered open, Ace started when the woman next to her spoke.

“We ‘aven’t decided for sure yet. Harry’s leaning towards Michelle, but I’ve always liked the name Dorothy.”

“Dorothy?” For the first time Ace took a good look at the woman in the bed. She’s young, and without the sheen of makeup she always wore, but it is unmistakably Audrey McShane she is looking at. And the baby had to be... “That’s me?”

“Dorothy?” The visitor unknowingly repeated Ace’s question. “Where’d you come up with that?”

“Wizard of Oz,” Ace and Audrey both said at the same time.

“Stupid reason to name a kid,” Ace muttered.

“That’s the Judy Garland movie about rainbows, innit?”

“It’s about a girl who escapes her dreary life and finds a great adventure.” Audrey stared out the hospital window. “I swore t’ myself I’d go on a great adventure like Dorothy did, and look at me now. Twenty miles from where I grew up, living in a tiny flat and working at Tesco’s. Maybe if I start her with a proper name my kid’ll turn out different.”

“It’s still a naff name,” Ace said, but she watched Audrey’s finger stroke a tiny hand until the room faded away.

A moment later she found that she and the Brig were standing in a bedroom. With the shades drawn and none of the lights on it was hard to make out any features of the room.

“Mummy?” The bedroom door was opened, letting in a little light from the hall. Whereas Ace hadn’t recognized the baby in the hospital, the child in the doorway was instantly familiar. Her blond hair was tangled, she was dressed in blue pajamas, and she carried a small stuffed cat.

“His name was Sooty,” she remembered, looking at the stuffed animal. She had fallen asleep clutching the toy every night until she was eight, when he had disappeared. Audrey had claimed she was too old by then to sleep with a stuffed toy; Ace didn’t think it was a coincidence.

“Mummy?” The child Ace had been stepped into the room and stood at the foot of the bed. She must have been about six, Ace realized. She remembered wearing those jim-jams on sleep aways at Manisha’s house.

The figure on the bed shifted and spoke wearily. “Go back to bed, Doro.”

“I’s scared, Mummy. Noises woked me up.”

“Do you remember this night?” the Brig asked.

“Should I? It doesn’t seem to be anything special.” Could have been the last time she had admitted to her mother that she was scared, Ace thought. They didn’t share emotions often in her memories.

“It was just the phone ringing.” This time when Audrey spoke Ace could tell it wasn’t just tiredness that affected her voice. There was something else. A bedside lamp was turned on and Ace saw that her mum’s eyes were puffy and red. There were a few shredded tissues lying next to her on the quilt.

The little girl clambered onto the bed and tentatively touched one tear-streaked cheek. “Wot’s wrong, Mummy?”

“Your Gran...” Audrey reached out and picked up the child, holding her in her lap. Ace suddenly remembered this night, and how she had clung to her mother for comfort. Looking at her mum now it looked more like the woman was drawing comfort from the child. “Your Gran’s died.”

“She was our only family, my Gran.” Ace stared at the pair on the bed and listened to as the woman tried to explain death to a six year old child. She hadn’t understood than, and had spent weeks waiting for her grandmother to come visit her. “We had dinner with her every Sunday, and she always gave me a bag of biscuits to take home. Things changed after she died.”

“You come from strong stock, Ace.” The Brig stood in the corner of the room, his eyes more on her than the grieving mother and daughter.

“My Gran was strong. She survived war and Fenric and raising a kid on her own when she was widowed. My mum always wanted someone else to take all the responsibility, and never went long without a man in her bed.” She’d always seemed more interested in her boyfriends than her daughter. Ace had told herself she didn’t care, and had spent as much time away from the flat as possible.

“It’s not always easy to be alone.” As the Brig spoke the room flickered around them. When it steadied again they were still in the same room but the bed was empty. There were other changes too - different curtains, different paint on the wall. Different time.

“Where is...”

“I don’t want to talking to a bleeding desk Sergeant, I want to talk to someone in charge.” Even from the other end of the flat, Audrey’s voice was loud and clear.

“Mum voluntarily talking to a copper? That’s different.” Ace lead the way out of the room and through a narrow hall to the kitchen where Audrey was still on the phone.

“No you won’t give ‘im a bloody message. It’s been a week since I left the last one and he still hasn’t called back. He’ll talk to me now or I’ll come down there and get in his sodding face and make him talk to me.”

“Wot’s got her so bothered? Somebody clamp her car?” Ace asked offhandedly.

“It might have something to do with this.” The Brig picked up a piece of paper from the table and held it out to her. Funny. Ace hadn’t thought of trying to touch anything in this dream/hallucination/what ever the hell it was. She took the proffered piece of paper.

It was a police report for a missing person. Dorothy Gale McShane, disappeared 13 September, 1986. The calendar on the wall told her that it was October now.

“Maybe if you didn’t spend all your time stuffing your face with doughnuts you’d have time to find out what happened to my daughter.” The phone was slammed down with enough force that it was a surprise when it didn’t break. “Rat bastards. You’ve all decided she’s just a runaway, and don’t give a toss.”

Audrey fidgeted with a package of fags, finally pulling one out and lighting it with a lighter. She leaned heavily against a wall and closed her eyes. “I hope their right, Doro. I hope you’re holed up in some dingy flat in London with a couple of mates or bumming around Europe with a backpack. ‘s better than lying in a ditch somewhere dead.”

When she opened her eyes again Ace thought for a moment her mum was looking directly at her. Audrey turned and flicked the ash of her fag into the sink.

“Not dead. A bit farther than London, though.” She’d given little consideration over the years to what her mum had thought of her disappearance. If anything she had assumed that Audrey had been relieved. By the time she was fifteen most of their conversations had been arguments and they had been more like two strangers living in the same flat then mother and daughter. The last proper talk Ace remembered having was a week after Manisha had died, three year before she had left.

The room started to darken and fade away.

“Is that the end, Brig? I’m pretty much done with this whole memory lane thing.” She was tired, more tired than she had been when she had fallen asleep.

“My job’s done.” The room was completely gone now, and the Brig was the only one standing with her in the darkness. “You still have two more to go tonight.”

“Can’t I break ‘em up a bit? Take the rest next week?” Maybe by then she would be far enough way from here that what ever was making this happen wouldn’t be able to find her.

“Afraid not, Ace. Better to get it all done at once anyway.”

“But I...” Without warning the Brig was gone, and Ace was alone. “Brig? Brigadier?”

She paced the empty dark space restlessly. It was times like these she wouldn’t mind being like her namesake, if it meant she could tap her heels together and be back in the TARDIS. “Oi. Whoever’s next in this naff little play would you just show up now so’s we can get it over with already? I don’t want to be here.”

“I don’t want to be here either.” He appeared behind her, a boy in a traditional English public school uniform with a stock of bright red hair.

Ace narrowed her eyes suspiciously. She’d known Manisha, and though she’d only met him a few times she knew the Brig. Why, all the sudden, would her subconscious invent someone new in this dream world of hers? “Don’t suppose that means we can skip this next part.”

“We could if there wasn’t the distinct possibility of someone watching us.”

“Bugger all,” Ace sighed. It had been worth a try. “Alright, show me whatever it is they want me to see.”

“I’m Turlough, by the way.” He tilted his head up a little as he spoke. “I used to...”

“I don’t really care.” Ace crossed her arms. She had a fair idea what was coming, and no way to run away and avoid it.

“Right pleasure to be around, you are,” he snapped. “Just my luck to get stuck with someone who makes Tegan seem as sweet as a lolly.”

A table appeared next to Turlough, followed by a chair, a bit of flooring, a kitchen. They were back in her mum’s flat. Ace looked around expectantly, but there was no sign of her mum.

“She’s not here,” Turlough said.

“Thank you, Captain Obvious. So why’d you bring me here?”

“Read the mail.” Turlough flopped down on the sofa and picked up a magazine, which he proceeded to flip through.

“Like I want to go through someone else’s bloody mail,” Ace muttered. There was a stack of opened letters at one end of the table, though, and she picked them up. Visa bill. Postcard advertising a new beauty shop on town. A still-sealed letter from a doctor’s office - no way in hell she was opening that. A wedding announcement. A card from...

A wedding announcement. Ace read the fancy script on the parchment paper.

Mr and Mrs Level.... Proud to announce... Daughter Brigit.... To Liam McShane...

The wedding had taken place six months ago, but the announcement was postmarked last week. Liam had been married without any family present. Ace wondered if he had send the letter to their mum to let her know, or if his new wife had done it. She wondered if he had wished his sister had been there.

“Are you done yet?”

“Cool your jets.” She read the announcement over again, taking in the details. They’d been married in a village church down south, near Nottingham, on the eleventh of May. May was a good month for weddings. The invitation was pretty posh; she wondered if that meant her brother had worn a tux or...

“You’re the one who was in a hurry to get this over with. I was simply reminding you that we do have other places to be.” From the corner of her eye Ace could see that Turlough was tapping his fingers on the arm of the sofa. The light plopping noise of the action didn’t bother her as much as the intent way he was watching her.

“Alright then.” Ace tossed the announcement back on the table. “Do your worst.”

“It’s not like I enjoy this.” As he stood up the room seemed to spin, becoming a great blur. When it came to rights again they were standing in a hospital corridor.

“Not again,” Ace muttered. “We keep going around in circles. Can’t you take me to a nice little tea shop or summit?”

“Room 317.” Turlough nodded to the door they were positioned in front of. “I don’t make the rules, I just follow the game.”

“Bet you wouldn’t be so laid back if someone was playing This is Your Life with you.” She stood frozen in the doorway, not wanting to cross the threshold. “Well, aren’t you coming?”

“I don’t do hospitals. They... scare me.” For the first time he didn’t look haughty or annoying. He looked something like she felt.

“Turlough...”

“I’ll be waiting out here for you.” He touched her shoulder, not to nudge her into the room as she had expected, but a friendly squeeze.

Alone, she walked into the room. Though there were two beds in the room, one was empty. The other was occupied by a woman Ace never would have recognized if they had passed each other in the street.

“Mum?” Rationally Ace knew that she couldn’t be heard, but she was still surprised when Audrey didn’t speak back. She took a few slow steps towards the bed. Her mum was awake, though her eyes had a far away look in them that spoke of tiredness or medication. Or both, Ace guessed. Hr hair was cut short and a natural brown very different from the bleached blond of Ace’s memories. She was breathing oxygen through her nose and there was an IV line taped to the back of her hand.

“What’s happened to you, Mum?” Oncology, Dave had said. Cancer. “Was it the f...”

“Dinner time, Ms. McShane.” Dressed in pale pink scrubs, a woman came into the room pushing a cart.

“’m not hungry.” Audrey’s voice was raspy and low. Ace strained to make out the words.

“I know you’ve been a bit woozy from the treatment, so I brought a nice soup and some crackers.” For one terrifying moment Ace though the cart was going to be push right through where she was standing. Ace wasn’t at all interested in finding out if she was non-corporeal like a ghost. Instead the woman veered to the right a little and pushed the cart alongside a table next to the bed. Ace moved to the far corner of the room.

“I told you I wasn’t hungry, you stupid cow.” The insult came out slowly, between gasping breaths, but no less scathing than it was meant. “Get out.”

“Don’t let her talk to you like that,” Ace said. Some things never changed.

The nurse had more composure than Ace had ever possessed. “You need to eat something, Audrey. Your pills require that you have food in your stomach before you take them.”

“Not taking the bloody pills either.” Slowly, Audrey rolled over, her back to the woman. She didn’t know it but the action turned her more fully in Ace’s direction.

“As pleasant as ever, Mum, aren’t you?” But she could see the pain in Audrey’s eyes, the effort that such simple thing like rolling over took.

“Audrey...”

“Get the fuck out of my room,” Audrey shouted. It came out as a wheezing moan.

When the nurse silently took Audrey’s suggestion, Ace did too. She didn’t need to see anymore.

“Ms. McShane’s being her usual self.” There was another nurse in the hall, not far from where Turlough was waiting for her. “It’s a good thing she’s not on my schedule. I’d of told her off by now.”

“Shush.” The first nurse looked over her shoulder at the still open door. “She’s dying, Carla. If she needs to yell about it a bit I can take it.”

Dying. The fact, so plainly stated, sent Ace reeling. Dave’s tone of voice when he had spoken of her mum, seeing her mum with her own eyes; it shouldn’t be such a shock. She had know the truth. Had known, but hadn’t wanted to admit it.

“Ace.”

She had forgotten about Turlough. “Get me the hell out of here.”

He nodded silently as the hall vanished. “There’s just one more...”

“No more,” Ace said grimly. “I want to go home.”

“One more,” he repeated. Behind him the walls of the TARDIS corridor formed. They were standing just outside her bedroom door.

“Professor?” The Doctor stood in front of her door. Ace waited for him to turn and smile, to tell her that it was alright, she’d been sleepwalking and he’d come to wake her up. It had all been a dream. They could share a pot of tea and maybe he would tell her a story of a far away planet she had yet to see.

“Ace.” He whispered her name but he didn’t turn to her. He pressed his hand against the door, as if reaching for something. For long moments he stood there, unmoving. Finally he lowered his hand and turned to walk away down the corridor.

“Wait...”

“He can’t hear you, remember?” Turlough leaned against the wall across from her bedroom door.

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re a smug and irritating git?” Only when the Doctor turned a corner and disappeared from view did Ace turn around.

“Once or twice.”

“Good. Then I don’t have t’ waste my breath.” She reached for her bedroom door, but found that the knob wouldn’t turn. “Turlough?”

She tried again, twisting the knob, rattling the door. When that didn’t work she gave it a kick with her foot, forgetting that she wasn’t wearing any shoes. Her toes throbbed in protest. “Gordon Bennett. You couldn’t give me a hand, could you Turlough?”

“Turlough?” Ace looked over her shoulder, but the hallway behind her was empty. She turned back, and swore under her breath when she found that the bedroom door was gone. Not opened. Gone. In the half-light she could see herself sleeping in the bed, the blankets kicked away and one pillow gripped tightly in her grasp.

Between her and her sleeping self stood a figure a figure draped in black, a hood covering the person’s face.

“Oh, this just keeps getting better and better, don’t it.” She stepped into the room. That thing about people looking innocent in their sleep, she thought as she looked at herself, wasn’t always true. She looked fierce, ready to do battle.

Maybe she already was.

“Well let’s get the introductions over with,” she said to the figure. She didn’t receive a reply.

“You know who I am. It’s only polite to return the favour.” More silence. Ace narrowed her eyes. “Alright then, why don’t...”

The room disappeared in the blink of an eye, replaced by a cemetery.

She’d been here before. She and her mates used to pinch a six pack and prove how cool they were by sneaking into the cemetery to drink them. Manisha was buried here, along with the rest of her family. Her gran...

Kathleen Anne Dudman
April 1923 to November 1976

She was standing next to her gran’s grave. Just on the other side was a hole, six feet deep. Ace moaned. “No.”

“Poor Audrey,” someone said in a low whisper. For the first time Ace noticed that there were other people surrounding the open grave. A dozen women her mum’s age, a few whom she recognized. A few people who had been their neighbors for years, including Mrs Chandry, who used to watch her when she was little. One or two men, who might have been past boyfriends. Shreela, holding hands with a bloke Ace had never seen. And a Reverend, dressed in black.

“Didn’t she have any family?” Ace couldn’t tell who asked the question, but she recognized Wanda, a friend of her mum’s, as the one who answered.

“Her mum died years ago, and her dad was killed in the war while she was still a baby.”

“She drove her husband away,” an older woman said critically. “He took the son with him when he left.”

“Wasn’t there a daughter? I seem to remember...”

“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” The Reverend’s words silenced the questions, but Ace knew it was only a temporary reprieve.

“Bloody vultures,” Ace muttered. “Half of them are only here for the gossip.”

After one last look at the empty hole that would soon be the final resting place of Audrey McShane, Ace turned her back to everyone. The figure in black still stood there. “What about you, mate? Why are you here?”

When there was no reply Ace’s temper flared. “I didn’t want this. I never got on with my mum, but I never wanted to to end like this. But the universe doesn’t care what I want. My mum’s dying, and there’s nothing I can do about it. She’s dying and I can’t change it. If there’s anything I’ve learned from the Professor it’s that you can’t change the past to suit yourself. It only gets more mucked up. So why the hell would you make me see this?”

She was shouting loud enough that the Reverend’s speaking would have been drowned out, had anyone else been able to hear her. They couldn’t. The only person who could hear her was herself and... “Who the hell are you?”

With grim determination Ace lunged at the cloaked figure, pulling at the hood until it fell away. She stumbled backwards, her mouth hung open in shock, when she found herself face to face with herself. She was the figure in black. She had forced herself to see the future. Had she also made herself see the rest?

“What am I supposed to do?” She didn’t expect an answer.

“Go and see her. You can’t change what will happen, but you can make your peace with her. You can say good-bye.”

“I never said good-bye to her.” They’d fought, that day she’d left Perivale. She’d shouted that she hated her um and slammed the bedroom door behind her before going to work on her experiment.

“Now’s your chance.”

.....

She awoke with a jolt and found that she was about to fall off the bed. Her bed, in her room. Everything look as it should, right down to the door that nice and solid as it should be.

“It was just a dream,” she said with little conviction. Climbing out of the bed she threw on a pair of jeans and a jumper. She left her room and made her way through the TARDIS halls to the console room. She paused in the doorway, unnoticed by the Doctor who was still working on the console.

“Need a hand with that?” she offered as she crossed the room and sat on the floor at his side.

The Doctor sat up. He surveyed her for long moments before speaking. “I’m almost done with the repairs. We should be able to leave in an hour or so.”

“We’re still in London, then.” She had know they would be, even before she had left her room.

“Still in London,” he confirmed. “But I was thinking of setting the coordinates for Rudhiraunda. The water there is red and...”

She placed a hand on his arm. “Sounds bril, that does. But I’ve someplace to go first. Will you come with me?”

“Visiting hours begin in at ten a.m.” The Doctor smiled as he tapped her nose with his finger. “With your help we should have time to finish the repairs and have a cup of tea before we leave for the hospital.”

“Hand me the sonic spanner, won’t you?” She leaned back to look at the underside of the console. After handing her the requested tool the Doctor laid down next to her, their shoulders touching. Ace rolled her head to the side and looked at him speculatively. A grin slowly spread across her face. “Hey Professor, before we head off for Rudhiraunda you want to crash a wedding with me?”

some interesting Ace pictures

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 03:20:29 GMT

well, i haven't seen those and i though i'd seen all Ace images. XD
found them while randomly looking for Who images on the 'net.

Sophie Aldred/Ace fans, click here:
http://pics.livejournal.com/madamotaku/pic/0006g6ff/

Fan Fiction: Giddy (1/1)

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:10:15 GMT

Title: Giddy
Rating: G
Character (s): Ace, the Seventh Doctor
Summary: Three meanings of the word "giddy"
Disclaimer: Not mine!
Note: Written for a challenge from hearts_blood, using the word "giddy".

::::
::::

Everything was funny. Even the fact that she stood dripping water on the console room floor.

"You're very slightly giddy," said the Doctor when she asked him why that might be.

"Wait a moment," Ace said. "I know what giddy means. I'm hardly whirling about, now am I?"

The Doctor handed her a towel. "That's only one definition of the word giddy," he told her. "The Old English root of the word giddy is gidig, meaning possessed by a God or an evil spirit."

"Fenric wasn't a God," Ace muttered darkly. "Just thought he was. And I'm not possessed- not yet." She felt herself smiling like she couldn't stop as the realization of her freedom hit her anew. "Never will be, now."

"Which brings us to a third definition of the word giddy," said the Doctor.

"Oh?"

His smile matched her own. "Joyfully elated."

Dripping wet, Ace hugged him. He didn't seem to mind.

::::
::::
fin

Ace/Eighth Doctor fic?

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 06:09:54 GMT

Does anyone know of any Ace/Eighth Doctor fic? Not the most common pairing, I know, but with the amount of chemistry Seven/Ace has/had, I'd be surprised if no one wrote about Eight going back to visit Ace, or something like that.

So... Ace/Eight fic, anyone?

Sat, 22 Dec 2007 22:32:00 GMT

Over the Christmas period the booths are all set to 5 minute voting! I'll be away from now until Friday so play nicely and have a great Christmas everyone!

New Who Voting booth:

Top three:
1. Ten/Jack with 1360 Votes
2. Jack/Algy with 1046 Votes
3. Nine/Jack with 940 Votes

Torchwood Pairings Booth:

Top three:
1. Jack/Ianto with 2653 Votes
2. Jack/Captain Jack with 738 Votes
3. Jack/Hand with 545 Votes

And the Classic Who Booth:

Top Three:
1. Five/Turlough with 426 Votes
2. Ben/Polly with 366 Votes
3. Seven/Ace with 333 Votes

Have Fun!

Drabble: Once, Twice, Three Times (Ace/Seven)

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 01:45:00 GMT

Title: Once, Twice, Three Times
Recipient: vvaltmouse
Rating: G
Character(s): The Seventh Doctor, Ace
Pairing(s): Seven/Ace
Prompt: Snow
Summary: A snowy Christmas Eve for the Doctor and Ace
Disclaimer: Not mine!
Notes: Fluff. I won't lie to you. Written for vvaltmouse in the Holiday Drabble Challenge, using the prompt word snow.

******
******

Once was an accident. Twice was coincidence.

"Three times," he told Ace, "is grounds for reprisal."

Ace grinned at him. "You've just made that up," she teased him.

"Hmmm, adapted it rather," he corrected her. "It all means much the same thing, really."

"Seriously?"

He nodded. "Oh yes. It means this." He tossed the snowball he'd hidden behind his back. Ace dodged it and retaliated. He threw the snowball he'd held in reserve in his pocket. Ducking it, Ace fell head first into a snow bank.

"Having a happy Christmas, Ace?" he asked lightly.

Another snowball was her only answer.

******
******

fin

Doctor Who @ YouTube - an awesome 7th Doctor fanvid

Sun, 09 Dec 2007 07:05:37 GMT

Just to note, this is not made by me. Just found it on YouTube, and thought I'd share the link in this comm:

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 21:30:27 GMT

Pairings Booth results for November

(The Torchwood, New Who and Classic Who booth results under the cut)

So everything’s now been reset... Off you go and start voting again!!

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 19:35:27 GMT

Have just added some new pairings to the New Who booth including Ten/Five so I thought it was time for a Voting Booths update:

Follow me to see the updates.

As a treat the booths are now set so you can vote every 10 minutes :)

FIC: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 8), Seven/Ace

Mon, 19 Nov 2007 05:57:08 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 8)
FANDOM: Doctor Who
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story! This is the last chapter. Thanks for all the appreciation and good times along the way!

Chapter 8

FIC: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 7), Seven/Ace

Sun, 18 Nov 2007 04:01:35 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 7)
FANDOM: Doctor Who
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story!

Chapter 7

FIC: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 6), Seven/Ace

Sat, 17 Nov 2007 06:20:05 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 6)
FANDOM: Doctor Who
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story!

Chapter 6

FIC: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 5), Ace/Seven

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 01:32:59 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 5)
FANDOM: Doctor Who
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story!

Chapter 5

FIC: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 4), Seven/Ace

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 04:21:23 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 4)
FANDOM: Doctor Who
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story!

Chapter 4

In the Widening Gyre, Chapter 3, Ace/Seven

Wed, 14 Nov 2007 02:19:00 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 3)
FANDOM: Doctor Who
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story!

Chapter 3

FIC: In the Widening Gyre, Chapter 2 (Seven/Ace)

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 16:15:26 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 2)
FANDOM: Doctor Who
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story! Gomer is the character from The Invasion of Time. All other Time Lords are my own invention.

Chapter Two

FIC: In the Widening Gyre, Chapter One

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 00:37:27 GMT

TITLE: In the Widening Gyre (Chapter 1)
RATING: Light R
PAIRING: Ace/Seven
SUMMARY: Ace goes to the Academy on Gallifrey; seeds of change have been sown, and neither Gallifrey nor Ace's relationship with the Doctor will remain the same.
NOTES: Thanks to vvaltmouse for beta and to vandonovan for encouraging me, even though he probably won't read the story!

Chapter One

Fic: This is how it Ends wiccagirl24

Fri, 09 Nov 2007 18:05:19 GMT

Title: This is How it Ends
Rating: PG-13
Character(s): Seven, Ace
Setting: Many years post series, in a galaxy far far away...
Spoilers: Small reference to Curse of Fenric, not really a spoiler.
Warning: Character death
Disclaimer: If I wish on a few million stars, maybe I'll own it. My luck, I'll probably wind up on Ice World instead.
Author's Notes: Thanks to dragonessasmith for the beta. This came from a challenge at thetenspot about the people you would die for, and Nemo the Everbeings amazing "Falls the Shadow" which fed my plot bunny.

Under other circumstances it might have been a perfect day. The air was warm but not humid, the water running over the rocks in the creek made a pleasant sound, and the flowers that grew along the bank released a sweet smell. If it had just been the two of them they might have set out a picnic in the grassy knoll. When the food was gone they would have listened to some jazz and she would have rolled her eyes when he started playing spoons but it would have been purely for show. She quite liked his spoons, but she’d never tell him that.

She wouldn’t be telling him anything, after today.

“You may not believe me, Time Lord, but I do regret this. Unfortunately balance has been lost and must be restored. One of you must die.”

While the other men stood in a wide circle, blocking their escape, the one who handed them a death sentence stood directly in front of them. Close enough that she could lash out at him if the Doctor wasn’t holding so tightly onto her arm.

“There must be some other solution.” The Doctor wasn’t shouting like he often did at their enemies. He wasn’t talking in the even, almost hypnotic way that he used to convince people to see his side of things. He sounded almost as if he was pleading.

“You are a wise man, Doctor. I think you understand that with life there must be death, that birth comes with pain. You understand sacrifice.” Tre’lin, their host-turned-captor, might have sounded regretful but he also sounded determined.

“If sacrifice is what you need why don’t you throw yourself into a volcano, toerag?” Ace growled.

“That would not help my people. I am not the one who brought death into Eden.”

“We were trying to stop the...”

“It is irrelevant. All that matters is that you have brought death here, and only your own death will stop the destruction of this entire planet.”

“I don’t think so.” It hadn’t been easy to get the can of Nitro Nine out of her bag without anyone noticing, but now she held it in the air. If she could just take out a couple of the guards, she and the Professor...

“No, Ace.” A warm hand encircled her wrist and almost before she could blink the explosive was gone from her hand, vanished into the depths of the Doctor’s pocket. “Killing more people will only make this worse.”

“Professor.” She tried to catch his eyes, to see what he was thinking, but he wouldn’t meet her gaze. His attention was focused on Tre’lin.

“Nothing happens to Ace. You must promise me that she will be unharmed, and free to leave this place.”

“I give my word, Doctor.” Tre’lin assented. “Your companion will be safe so long as she remains here and her departure unimpeded. So long as you uphold your end of the bargain, of course.”

“Of course,” the Doctor said politely, as if agreeing to a dinner invitation and not his own death.

“No!” Ace tried to wrench free from the Doctor’s grasp but he held firm.

“You’ll allow me a moment alone with my friend.”

“It is the least I can do.” Tre’lin nodded, moving backwards until he joined the circle of guards.

“We have to get out of here, Professor. We...”

“Oh, Ace.” She could see his eyes clearly now; their unfathomable depth and incredible sadness. She was reminded of Northuberland a lifetime ago, crying in the mud while he tried to convince her that destroying her faith had been the only way to save her life.

“This is the only way?” She needed to know for sure, and in this he wouldn’t lie to her.

“I’m afraid so, Ace.” His hand was on her shoulder, and though there were other people watching the world narrowed to the two of them.

“And there’s nothing we can do to get out of it?”

“Nothing.”

“Then I guess this is it. We had a good run, didn’t we?”

“The best.” One last touch of his finger to her nose.

“And we did good.” She had asked him that only once, outside a church in London. Time will tell had been his answer then. So much time had passed between then and now.

“We did very good.” He took off his hat, placed it on her head. Passing the torch.

“I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. And I wouldn’t have changed a thing.” Her hands curled around the lapels of his jacket and she leaned into him. As kisses went it was a simple one; eyes open, lips pressed together. An uncomplicated end to a relationship that was anything but. Easier than trying to say things that ultimately could never be expressed in words. It ended too soon.

“You’re adventure isn’t over yet, Ace McShane. There are still worlds to see, dictators to overthrow, pies to stick your fingers in. You still have plenty of good to do.” From his pocket he withdrew the can of Nitro Nine he had confiscated earlier and handed it back to her.

“Professor?” She shrugged the rucksack off her shoulder, returned the can inside.

“Yes Ace?”

“I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to apologize for.”

“I hope you still feel the same way when you come to.”

With a carefully planned swing she used her bag to hit the Doctor over the head, glad that once was all it took to make him fall to the ground. She wouldn’t have gotten a second chance. Taking off the straw hat she set it neatly on the grass next to him. She resisted the urge to touch him or say anymore good-byes. He might wake up quickly, and she needed the impending events to be fate accompli.

“You’ll make sure he gets to the TARDIS safely,” she commanded Tre’lin when she approached him.

“You are a very brave woman and a loyal friend to do such a thing. If this is what you want...”

“It is.” From the time she was sixteen she had made it her job to watch the Professor’s back. She wasn’t going to stop now.

“Then you have my word of honor, the same is I gave the Doctor. He will be safe in this place, the choice to stay or leave is his own.”

“He’s not going to... when he wakes up tell him...” No, there was nothing this man could say that she hadn’t already said. She just hoped he would forgive her someday.

“Never mind. Let’s get this over with already.” With one last look at the Doctor she followed Tre’lin from the circle and away from the others.

The end was easier than she thought it would be.

Is it like this
In death’s other kingdom
Waking alone
At the hour when we are
Trembling with tenderness
Lips that would kiss
Form prayers to broken stone.

This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.

Looking for a beta

Sun, 04 Nov 2007 04:09:04 GMT

Hi, all. I've been working on a large fanfic (over 30K words and not quite done yet) for some time, and I'm getting towards the stage when I need a beta to read it over and see if it makes sense to anyone other than me. It's Ace-centric, my own version of what would happen if Ace went to the Academy on Gallifrey and the Doctor didn't just drop her off and leave. It is, in the end, Seven/Ace ship, but will not go above an R rating.

Is there someone who could help me when I hit the polishing stage, which should be within about a week?

Sat, 03 Nov 2007 21:26:30 GMT

Pairings Booth results for October

Before the results I have to bring up the annoying subject of Cheating. I have no control over the booth to deter bogus votes as its run by Funvote – so I rely on your honesty. I’ve had a few reports of very suspicious voting patterns going on so I have to plea to you...

Please. Don’t. Cheat.

It mucks it up for others and taints the otherwise niceness of the booths.

Thank-you.

And on to the results...

I need I fix.

Fri, 12 Oct 2007 23:45:34 GMT

Does anyone have any good recommendations for some Ace, Doctor fan-fiction?!
I am in need of my Ace fix.
Thanks
Chanel

One Night in Bangkok, PG-13

Sun, 07 Oct 2007 00:34:43 GMT

Title: One Night in Bangkok
Author: wiccagirl24
Characters: Seven, Ace, and Ianto
Disclaimer: I keep rubbing lamps in hopes that a genie will appear and I can wish fir Doctor Who. No luck yet, so the show, characters, etc are not mine.
Rating/Warnings: PG-13 for allusions to sex (and Ace masquerading as a prostitiute)
A/N: Much love to dragonessasmith for the beta and coffeemagic's mun for the inspiration. The character of Ianto in the story is Torchwood's Ianto Jones. Why is he traveling with Ace and Seven? That is a long story to be told at a future date.
Summery: A girl named Rena who needs help, the seedy underbelly of a city, and Ace undercover as a hooker.

One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster
The bars are temples but the pearls ain't free
You'll find a god in every golden cloister
A little flesh, a little history
I can feel an angel sliding up to me
One night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble
Not much between despair and ecstasy
One night in Bangkok and the tough guys tumble
Can't be too careful with your company
I can feel the devil walking next to me.

-One Night in Bangkok, Murray Head

It was supposed to be a relaxing evening. The Doctor and Ianto had talked Ace into going to a play with them and she had returned the favor by insisting that they went out for drinks afterward. The bar was only a block away from the theater and they were almost there when a woman came running out of the alleyway straight into Ace.

“I sorry. So sorry.” The woman- girl really- tried to pull away but Ace held her firm. Despite the cold night she was wearing a dress revealing enough that Ianto was blushing. Her feet were bare and bleeding.

“Wait a sec,” Ace said as she shrugged out of her jacket. “Let us...”

“I have to go. They following.”

“Who is following?” Ianto asked gently.

“I need get help. Promised others.” The girl refused Ace’s offer of her jacket and once more tried to pull away.

“You’ve found help,” the Doctor promised, calming her with a single look. “We can help you. My name is The Doctor and these are my friends Ace and Ianto.”

“My name Rena,” the girl said. “They took me from family.”

...

“I don’t like this.” Ianto fussed around the kitchen, washing coffee cups and wiping down the counter, avoiding looking directly at Ace or the Doctor.

“We can’t do anything to help Rena and the other girls until we know more,” Ace said patiently.

“I understand that. I don’t understand why you have to go alone.”

“I’m not alone. Rena’s showing me the way.”

“Ace...”

“She’ll be careful.” The Doctor, who had been silently watching them, spoke up. “Won’t you Ace?”

“You know me, Professor,” Ace answered glibly.

“I do, which is why I’m asking you to be more cautious this time.”

“Oi! I’m hurt.” Ace crossed her arms, mock-glaring at the Doctor.

“Please?” Ianto asked softly.

“I’ll be there and back before anyone sees me,” she promised. She didn’t know that she was lying.

.......

Marks was watching her. He was trying to be discreet- a word she was sure he wouldn’t understand the meaning of if she explained it to him. He was standing in a doorway directly across the street and she had noticed him from the moment he had gotten out of his red Mustang. No one had walked past in that time, but now a man was approaching and she was going to have to make this look real.

“Hey mister, you looking t’ have a good time tonight?” she called out, pitching her voice so that it would carry as far as Mark’s hiding spot.

“I’m sorry, I’m on my way to...” The man gave her a cursory glance, looking away before jerking his head back. In the process he stumbled, but caught himself before falling. “Ace?”

“Oh, it’s you,” she said, not letting on how relieved she was. Louder she added “You like what you see?”

“Where have you been? We’ve been looking for you everywhere, the Doctor and I.” When he stuck one hand into his suit pocket Ace guessed that he was going for his mobile, forgetting that he couldn’t reach the Professor that way.

“Rena’s dead.” Ace looked down at her hands, for an instant seeing them as they had been two days ago- covered with Rena’s blood. “I had to go with the others when they were moved, otherwise I would have lost them.”

“I’m sorry. I know how hard you were trying to get her somewhere safe.” He started to reach out to her, but stopped himself. Any comforting gesture would look suspicious to the man across the street watching them.

“Can’t save them all,” Ace shrugged, trying to look blasé. Her eyes couldn’t hide how she felt, though. She needed to get out of here, away from Marks’ hawk-like gaze. “So wadda you say, mister? You wanna take me home for the night?”

“Ummm...” Ianto studied her, trying to ascertain what she wanted him to say. Very subtly she nodded. “I have a twenty in my wallet,” he offered.

“Twenty pounds won’t even buy you an hour,” she said loudly. Leaning against the wall behind her she ran a hand through her hair and flipped the ends. She hoped the pose made her look experienced and seductive, not ridiculous like it made her feel. She was not made to act coy. “Someone as... knowledgeable... as I am rates a hell of a lot more than a twenty. Make it thirty, honey?”

Ianto didn’t risk speaking, only nodded and led her by the elbow to the nearest corner. He didn’t slow down until they were two blocks away from where they had met. He looked around for a red Mustang before he stopped. “Ace...”

“Don’t.” She held up her hand, palm outward. “My feet are killing me, I haven’t slept in two days, and this thing laughingly called an outfit shows off more of me than has been seen in public since Sheena dared me to streak past the market the year I was twelve. Any reprimands or lectures are going to have to wait until we get back to the TARDIS, and then you are going to have to wait in line behind the Professor. I’m sure he’s well mad by now.”

“Not mad.” Ianto shook his head. “Worried And I was just going to say that the alley where we landed is fairly far from here. We might want to take a cab.”

“Won’t that just make a picture.” Ace tugged disparagingly on her black spandex mini skirt. “But yeah, the less I have to walk in these blast shoes the better.”

“Here, this might be a bit more comfortable.” Slipping off his pinstriped suit jacket, Ianto draped it over Ace’s shoulders.

“Your really are something else, you know that? I thought only blokes in sappy chick movies did thing like this.” Ace tugged the jacket tighter around herself. The material still held his body heat. For the first time in two days she began to feel warm. “Let’s find that cab now. The sooner we get back the sooner I can get a cup of your magic brew. The coffee I’ve been drinking to stay awake isn’t worth a bent penny compared to yours.”

“I’ll head straight for the kitchen when we get to the TARDIS,” Ianto promised. “Then you can tell the Doctor and I where the girls are and how we’re going to rescue them.”

.....

She fell asleep in the cab. Blinking her eyes furiously she tried to stay awake, but the lull of the ride and the knowledge that Ianto would look out for her was too much of a temptation. When they rounded a corner she slumped to the side and used Ianto’s shoulder for a pillow.

“We’re here.” Ianto shook Ace gently before reaching across the front seat to pay the cabbie. The man gave them a strange look, either because of Ace’s outfit or because of the deserted alleyway they had stopped at. Ace didn’t care which. She was just glad to round the corner of the ally and see the familiar blue box. Ianto used his key to unlock the door, holding it open for her. She was vaguely surprised to find that the console room was empty.

“He’s looking for you too,” Ianto answered her unasked question. “He should be back soon, as we were to meet here at twilight.”

“I’m for the shower then.” Kicking off the high heels, not caring where they landed, Ace almost ran for the door leading into the rest of the TARDIS. It would be hard enough to confess to the Professor exactly what she’d been doing without giving him a visual aid. She’d feel better after a shower and the shield of her own clothes.

A mug of steaming coffee was waiting for her when she entered the kitchen. She wore jeans and a cable-knit sweater topped off with her patched black jacket. She didn’t wear it often anymore, but when she had opened her wardrobe it had been the first item of clothing she had laid hands on. The TARDIS, it seemed, had read her mood. After all these years it knew her almost as well as the Professor did.

“Thanks.” She took a sip, closing her eyes to savor the taste. “If the ancient gods had tasted this they would have given up their nector and invited you to live on Mt Olympus with them.”

“I get altitude sickness,” Ianto joked as he took a sip of his own coffee. By unspoken agreement they slipped into a light conversation, avoiding all talk of the last two days until the Doctor could join them.

.....

“I’ve returned, but I’m heading right back out again. She shouldn’t have to... Ace!” Ace barely had time to put down her cup before arms wrapped around her tightly. She rested her head against the Doctor, taking comfort in the faint sound of his hearts beating.

“You have some serious explaining to do young lady.” Relief warred with scolding in his voice.

“Ren...” The words stuck in her throat. Biting her lip she buried her face in the question marked jersey.

“Rena’s dead, sir,” Ianto supplied in a low voice. “Ace hasn’t said much, but I think she was with the girl when it happened. They moved the others right away, probably afraid of being caught, and Ace stayed with them.”

“Of course she did. Oh, Ace.” The Doctor sighed deeply. “I wish we hadn’t come here.”

“We have to get them out, Professor.” Pulling away from the support, Ace stood up straight and used her hand to wipe away a single tear. “There’s twenty girls, and the youngest one isn’t thirteen yet. If we don’t get them out Barnes will...”

“We’ll get them out.” The Doctor’s spoke solemnly, the words sounding like an oath. “Ianto?”

“If you have the address, Ace, I can hack into the archives and get the layout of the building.”

“In the meantime you should catch forty winks, Ace. It’s going to be a long night.” The Doctor nodded in the direction of the doorway.

“I’m fine. I’ll just have another mug of Ianto’s coffee.” It was a challenge to keep from yawning.

“Nonsense. Caffeine, no matter how good, is not a substitute for sleep. We won’t want to leave until it’s late anyway, as there will be less people guarding the girls. Right?”

“You won’t leave without me,” Ace insisted, folding her arms.

“We promise,” Ianto answered for the both of them.

“Professor?” She needed to hear him say the words, otherwise she’d never be able to sleep. She wouldn’t put it past him to decide that it was in her best interest to stay behind, and leave without her. He could be right devious at times. She had made a promise to Rena, and she intended to keep it.

“We won’t stir a step without you. You, me and Ianto, we are like the Three Musketeers.”

“All for one?” Ace asked with a sleepy half smile. Knowing that Ianto and the Professor would have a plan, including her, by the time she woke up made her feel much better.

“Indubitably,” the Doctor answered.

crossposted to ace_fans, dwfiction and wiccaficca

Exotic alien swords are easy to come by- Ace's are rare.

Thu, 04 Oct 2007 19:10:18 GMT

I've been getting to know Photoshop, and have started playing with icons. Thought I'd share. Comments/thoughts/credit are appriciated.

17 DW icons, Seven/Sylvester and Ace/Sophie (one with Ianto and one with Hex)

Sample:

The rest at my journal: I don't believe you've met my young friend Ace, an expert in calorification, incineration, carbonization, and inflammation.

crossposted to dwicons

PS- On a related note I am looking for a beta who is familiar with Ace and Seven. I'd adore someone also familiar with Torchwood, as I have a 'verse in which Ianto Jones is traveling in the TARDIS.

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 20:15:47 GMT

Pairings Booth results for September

Classic Who Booth:

1. Five/Nyssa with 3242 Votes
2. Seven/Ace with 3122 Votes
3. Four/Adric with 2485 Votes
4. Two/Jamie with 2367 Votes
5. Turlough/Tegan with 2176 Votes
6. Ian/Barbara with 2034 Votes
7. Brigadier/Benton with 1642 Votes
8. Four/Benton with 1173 Votes
9. Four/Romana II with 1121 Votes
10. Five/Turlough with 908 Votes

(A complete new entry gained the top spot this month – Five/Nyssa. Again it’s all change round in this booth – there’s so much goodness to choose from you guys can’t seem to stick to the same thing *LOL*. Variety is good.This booth had the most votes this month at 25387)

So everything’s now been reset… off you go and start voting again!!